Is Patrick Mahomes the early favorite for NFL MVP?
After 10 touchdown passes in the first two weeks of the NFL season, it already looks like Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes might be the early MVP favorite.
If someone had told you in April 2017, shortly after the Kansas City Chiefs selected Patrick Mahomes with the 10th-overall pick in the NFL Draft, that Mahomes would be one of the league’s best quarterbacks a year later, what would your reaction be?
Shock? Surprise? Laughter? All of the above? Well, Mahomes has been the very best quarterback from the 2017 draft class and cemented himself in the MVP conversation after two Kansas City wins.
His 580 passing yards and 10 touchdowns put him near the top of the league at his position in raw stats, but even more important for his MVP candidacy and the Chiefs’ future is the number in the win column. Mahomes’ athleticism and efficiency have launched Kansas City’s offense into the stratosphere.
By thinking quickly and finding space for his skill-position weapons to operate, Mahomes has taken advantage of what was already in place on the Chiefs’ roster and elevated it.
“We’ve made a note, in our draft room, to look for guys who understand the play is never dead,” Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said to the Ringer. “Because Patrick is going to hit you from anywhere.”
That’s certainly true for someone with legit 60-plus-yard arm strength, yet Mahomes hasn’t had to face tough situations very often in the first two weeks of the year. Rather, it’s plays like that Travis Kelce touchdown that are open because of the coaches’ trust in Mahomes to make the right decisions.
From Kareem Hunt to Tyreek Hill to Sammy Watkins and Travis Kelce, the Chiefs’ wild amount of talent means someone is bound to be open when Mahomes has time to throw.
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It’s too early to necessarily predict anything in the NFL, and Mahomes certainly has MVP competition in Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers. But the fact that a second-year quarterback has taken one of the NFL’s best teams and raised their ceiling is certainly cause for celebration.